White House ousts arts commissioners expected to oversee ballroom, arch construction
The White House on Tuesday fired the members of the Commission of Fine Arts, a federal agency that advises on architectural developments in Washington, D.C.
“We are preparing to appoint a new slate of members to the commission that are more aligned with President Trump’s America First Policies,” a White House official said in a statement.
The move comes as Trump is plowing ahead with construction of a ballroom at the White House, demolishing the East Wing in the process, and as he has spoken about building an arch near the entrance to the District across from Arlington National Cemetery.
The Washington Post first reported that the administration fired all six members of the commission, which is expected to review plans for the arch and potentially the ballroom.
A spokesperson for the commission did not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment.
The commission was established in 1910 by Congress to advise on the location of statues and monuments in public areas around the District. Its scope has grown in the decades since to include other structures on and adjacent to public lands.
The six members fired on Tuesday by the White House had been appointed by former President Biden. Their terms were set to expire after 2028.
Construction crews last week demolished the East Wing of the White House to make way for the ballroom Trump has sought to construct for years. The president said the cost of the ballroom, which would be used to host state dinners and other large events, had increased from $200 million to $300 million.
The White House has argued it did not require approval to demolish the East Wing because only new, vertical construction requires approval from the National Capital Planning Commission. The administration is expected to submit plans for the ballroom to the commission, which has been stocked with Trump allies and is led by Will Scharf, the White House staff secretary.
Trump earlier this month also detailed plans for an arch to be built near the Lincoln Memorial at the entrance to Washington. The president has not provided specifics, such as how much the arch would cost, whether the city approved the project or what the construction timeline might be.
Trump has pushed out various board members and administrative figures in his first months in office, including the board of directors at the Kennedy Center, the members of the National Capital Planning Commission, the archivist and others.
The Biden administration similarly sought to remake certain D.C. advisory boards early on, including by remaking the Commission of Fine Arts, the National Capital Planning Commission board and by asking Trump allies to resign from the Board of Visitors at the U.S. Naval Academy
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